The peacock is best known for the male's impressive tail plumage, called his train. By looks alone, this magnificent creature seemingly deserves to live like a king, but in reality his home requires more substance than style. You can fashion a simple peacock coop during a weekend with a few tools and materials available at any lumber yard or hardware store.
Things You'll Need
- Measuring tape
- Spray paint
- Eight 4-by-4 timbers, 8 feet long
- Post-hole digger
- Wire farm fencing, 6 feet high
- Chicken wire
- Wire cutters
- Large fence staples
- Staple gun
- J-hooks
- J-hook pliers
- Premade metal gate with hardware
- 40-pound bag of cement
- 5-gallon bucket
- Small shovel
- Level
Instructions
A Place to Roost
Measure out where your peacock coop will be constructed. Use spray paint to draw out your measurements, on the ground. The coop should be no smaller than 10 feet by 10 feet for a single peacock.
Using the post-hole digger, dig four corner holes 2 feet deep, spaced according to the dimensions you've determined the coop will have.
Measure the distance between the holes you've just dug. On three of the four sides, excluding the side that will be the front of the coop, mark the exact center between the corner holes with the spray paint. If your coop is 10 feet by 10 feet, your three paint marks should be 5 feet from both hole.
Dig a 2-foot hole at each of the three paint marks.
Measure the premade gate. For a standard 4-foot-by-4-foot chain-link gate, you'll need to dig one additional hole along the front side of the coop, 4 feet from the corner. For example: If you want your entry gate at the right front corner, you'll sink the timber 4 feet in from the right front corner, along the front of the coop. Use the gate as a guide to ensure you allow enough space for the hinges. Mark this hole site with the spray paint. You'll be hanging the premade gate between your corner timber and the timber you'll sink in the hole site you've just marked.
Using the post-hole digger, dig the final hole at the mark you've just made. Place the timbers, one by one, into the holes you've dug.
Mix the cement, according to the instructions. If you're mixing in a bucket, add the ready-mix cement first, make an indentation in the powder, and add water according to the cement packaging instructions. Mix with a trowel or small shovel. If you're using a wheelbarrow, add water first, then the ready-mix, according to the instructions.
Fill the holes, with timbers in them, with cement. Use a level to be certain you've placed the timbers so they are plumb or vertically straight. Let the cement dry overnight; it will cure for several days.
Hang the gate, using the included hardware, between the appropriate timbers in the front of the coop.
Add fencing, stapling it to each timber at intervals of 2 inches. Cut away any excess fencing with the wire cutters. Remove any jagged edges.
Add chicken wire to the top of the coop. Staple the wire to the top of each timber. Secure it to the existing fencing with J-hooks. If the wire is insufficient in length and needs to be pieced together to create a roof, secure the roof pieces together with J-hooks.
Add chicken wire to the front of the coop where the gate doesn't extend. Secure it properly with the staple gun. This will keep other birds from entering the coop. Remove any jagged edges that may injure your peacock, or you, when you enter the coop.